HORSE welfare at the Appleby Fair has been thrown into the spotlight following the death of a horse from 'exhaustion'.

The event which brings thousands of visitors to Appleby is one of the largest gatherings in Europe for Gypsies and travellers.

This year's event officially began today (June 6) and will run until June 12. 

Gypsy and Traveller representatives, Billy Welch and Bill Lloyd, have "condemned" the unidentified party responsible for the animal's death in a statement released today (June 6). 

READ MORE: Live: Appleby Horse Fair 2024 gets underway

"We are sickened and saddened by the cruelty that this person or persons have shown," they said. 

"We have no hesitation in asking anyone who has any knowledge of this awful event to cooperate fully with police and RSPCA in identifying whoever is responsible," they said. 

They urged anyone with relevant information to speak up for "the sake of justice and the fair's future".

“We have been, and remain, fully supportive of the efforts of the RSPCA and their partner charities to improve the standards of horse welfare at the Fair, and this is a body blow to all our efforts. 

"As far as we know we have never had this happen before and we plead with everyone to listen to the welfare messages and act on them so that it never happens again.

“Appleby is one of the greatest celebrations of the horse in Europe and this tragic event is a stain on the Fair that will be hard to wash out.

"The Fair attracts a diverse mix of people including Gypsies and Travellers, but the majority are settled people.

"The standard of horsemanship among Gypsy people is usually high and they are often among the first to report abuse at the Fair when they see it.

"We do not yet know the identity of the person responsible and if it was a Gypsy we will condemn them even more strongly and loudly,  but please do not leap to any conclusions until we know the facts," they said. 

The RSPCA has been approached for comment.